South East Queensland
22.1 Groundwater allocation announcements

The volumetric value for the line item at the end of the 2011–12 year was 9,340 ML.

This line item represents the groundwater allocation announcement in the Benefitted Area of the Central Lockyer water supply scheme (WSS). As no groundwater entitlements in this area were held by urban utilities, all groundwater allocation announcements were listed in this line item.

In the Lockyer Valley GMA, within the Central Lockyer WSS there is an area known as Benefitted Area for which groundwater licences are available. Benefited Areas are the equivalent of a regulated surface water resource. The Benefitted Area uses managed aquifer recharge via discharge of water from water storages to watercourses to recharge the groundwater. Of the Central Lockyer WSS's metered, licensed groundwater extractions, 1,773 ML was extracted from the Benefitted Area during the 2011–12 year. This was included as line item 18.11 Entitled extraction of allocated groundwater to users.

The volume extracted from Non–Benefitted Area during the 2011–12 year was included as line item 18.8 Entitled extraction of non–allocated groundwater to users.

Currently, interim groundwater entitlements exist within the Central Lockyer WSS. These do not have volumetric limits, and therefore announced allocations cannot be made for individual entitlement holders; however, there is a nominal groundwater entitlement for the entire Central Lockyer WSS. Under the interim resource operations licence (IROL), the water-sharing rules provide for extraction up to the Central Lockyer WSS groundwater limit, with a provision that when individual allocations are set, groundwater allocation announcement rules should be used.

Given the intent for groundwater allocation announcement rules, for the purpose of the 2012 Account, the Central Lockyer WSS has been considered to have a system with groundwater allocation announcements, extractions and forfeiture.

Although there are more groundwater management areas (GMAs) within the SEQ region, only information for the Lockyer Valley GMA Benefitted Area has been included within the line items listed below:

• line item 6.1 Groundwater allocation remaining
• line item 14.1 Adjustment and forfeiture of groundwater allocation
• line item 18.11 Entitled extraction of allocated groundwater to users
• line item 22.1 Groundwater allocation announcements

For the purpose of the 2012 Account, other GMAs are not included to have this entitlement system at present. As groundwater entitlements evolve in the SEQ region and the announcement, extractions and forfeiture model is implemented, other GMAs may also be included within these line items. In the 2012 Account, any extractions from other GMAs (where volumes are available) was included in line item 18.8 Entitled extraction of non–allocated groundwater to users.

The following table shows the ground water allocation reconciliation. Due to the very wet year, irrigation demand was significantly lower than in previous years resulted in a higher than usual forfeiture of groundwater allocation.

Seqwater WaterHub database, this information was previously provided by DERM but commencing with the NWA 2012 Account, it is being provided by Seqwater.

Seqwater.

Although no formal groundwater allocation announcement occurred, the Central Lockyer WSS groundwater limit of 9,340 ML for the Benefitted Area has been used as the groundwater allocation announcement value. This was obtained from the Central Lockyer IROL.

There are no GMAs in the Gold Coast or Logan Basin WRP areas; therefore, groundwater limits are not applicable.

None.

There was no uncertainty associated with this value.